Spring is in the air. As the days get longer and plants emerge from thawed soil, big landscaping decisions loom ahead. What plants should you add or remove from your yard this year? Are there any big landscaping projects that you’re feeling brave enough to tackle? But for every landscaping decision you make, there is one thing you should consider: clean water.

In this episode of Time and Tide, we’re following the journey of a water droplet to learn how landscaping decisions that you make on your property can affect the health of local water bodies. In this story, that water can either sink slowly into the ground as nature intended or attain a need for speed as it flows across hard, man-made surfaces, picking up contaminants along the way.

Today, we're helping you make Spring landscaping decisions with clean water in mind. We’ll focus on a recent training hosted for landscaping professionals, called Landscaping for Water Quality, and the lessons learned about designing landscapes that are attractive, ecologically functional, and healthy for local water bodies.

In Act 1, we speak with Amy Papineau from UNH Cooperative Extension who explains why blueberry plants are a delicious and sustainable addition to your backyard. We’ll dig into the science behind soil in the Granite State, which is more complex than you’d think, and leave you with the base of plant knowledge to impress any horticulturist.

In Act 2, Julia Peterson from NH Sea Grant digs into why it can be so tough to find science-backed answers in a world of information overload. Cut through the nonsense with us and find the reliable answers you’re looking for, through a little thing called ‘extension’.

Finally, we hear from local landscapers who participated in this year’s Landscaping for Water Quality training. Is there a market for more sustainable landscaping practices, and is it possible to have a beautiful yard that also helps wildlife?

Full episode transcript is available below.

Guest Speakers:

Amy Papineau, Extension Field Specialist in Landscape and Greenhouse Horticulture, UNH Cooperative Extension Food & Agriculture Program

Julia Peterson, Extension Program Leader, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Daisy Chinburg, Designer, Site Structures Landscape

Patrick Shannon, Miracle Farms Landscaping

Timothy Sicard, Town of Hampton Falls, NH

Hosted by: Brian Yurasits, Science Communication Specialist, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Co-Hosted by: Erik Chapman, Executive Director, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Produced by: Brian Yurasits

Further reading:

New Hampshire Homeowner's Guide to Stormwater Management: https://www.des.nh.gov/sites/g/files/ehbemt341/files/documents/2020-01/homeowner-guide-stormwater.pdf

Directory of Landscape Professionals Trained in Ecological Landscaping for Water Quality Protection: https://extension.unh.edu/resource/directory-landscape-professionals-trained-ecological-landscaping-water-quality-protection

Landscaping for Water Quality 2026: https://extension.unh.edu/event/2026/03/landscaping-water-quality

Green Grass and Clear Water: https://seagrant.unh.edu/our-work/water-quality/water-quality-lawn-care-outreach-materials

New Hampshire Sea Grant works to enhance our relationship with the coastal environment to sustain healthy and resilient ecosystems, economies, and communities through integrated research, extension, education, and communications efforts. Based at the University of New Hampshire, New Hampshire Sea Grant is one of 34 programs in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program, a state-federal partnership serving America’s coasts. Learn more by visiting: seagrant.unh.edu

University of New Hampshire is an equal opportunity employer, learn more: https://extension.unh.edu/civil-rights-statement

A century ago, vast reefs of Eastern Oysters, Crassostrea virginica, stretched across Great Bay cleaning the water, sheltering fish, and forming one of New Hampshire’s most important coastal habitats. Today, a fraction of those wild oyster beds remains. But across the bay, a quiet movement is underway to bring them back one shell and a few baby oysters at a time.

In this episode of Time and Tide, we’re focusing on a small animal with an outsized impact, the Eastern Oyster. We’ll start with the basics: what oysters are, how they live, and why they matter so much to estuaries like Great Bay. From there, we look back in time at the natural history of oysters in granite state waters, to understand why they’ve experienced a 90% decline.

But don't worry, this is ultimately a story about restoration. Brianna Group and Kelsey Meyer from The Nature Conservancy describe how in classic New Hampshire fashion, people from all walks of life are working together to see oysters thrive. Researchers, farmers, volunteers, restaurants, nonprofits, and consumers are all part of the restoration equation.

Some of these oyster restoration projects are big, requiring a football field worth of oyster shells. Dave Beattie and Dale Pike from the Coastal Conservation Association of New Hampshire explain how restaurants can turn their waste into the foundation for tomorrow’s reefs.

In the final act of this story, we hear why restoring wild oysters matters to two sisters working in the oyster business. Laura Brown and Krystin Ward are part of this restoration network and enjoy being able to provide their large, ‘ugly’ oysters for a greater purpose.

Full episode transcript is available below.

Guest Speakers:

Kelsey Meyer-Rust, Ph.D., Coastal Conservation Coordinator, The Nature Conservancy New Hampshire

Brianna Group, Great Bay Program Manager, The Nature Conservancy New Hampshire

Capt. David Beattie, Oyster Recycling Coordinator, Coastal Conservation Association

Dale Pike, Secretary, Coastal Conservation Association and Ocean Conservationist Volunteer with the Nature Conservancy

Laura Brown, Owner and Operator, Fox Point Oysters

Krystin Ward, Laboratory Research Supervisor at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture and Owner of Choice Oysters

Hosted by: Brian Yurasits, Science Communication Specialist, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Co-Hosted by: Erik Chapman, Executive Director, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Produced by: Brian Yurasits

Further reading:

Restoring Oyster Reefs in New Hampshire’s Great Bay – The Nature Conservancy

Oyster Recycling Project - Coastal Conservation Association

New Hampshire Sea Grant – Oyster Aquaculture

Fox Point Oysters - Laura Brown

Choice Oysters - Krystin Ward

University of New Hampshire Oyster Research

New Hampshire Sea Grant works to enhance our relationship with the coastal environment to sustain healthy and resilient ecosystems, economies, and communities through integrated research, extension, education, and communications efforts. Based at the University of New Hampshire, New Hampshire Sea Grant is one of 34 programs in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program, a state-federal partnership serving America’s coasts. Learn more by visiting: seagrant.unh.edu

University of New Hampshire is an equal opportunity employer, learn more: https://extension.unh.edu/civil-rights-statement

Here in New England, Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua) is woven into the fabric of our coastal history. For centuries, this species has fueled economies, fed communities, and even left its mark on the map — a testament to the powerful connection between cod and the region it helped define.

But just as cod shaped New England, human activity has shaped cod.

Today, this historically significant fishery is tightly regulated in an effort to rebuild depleted stocks. And yet, effective management depends on understanding something researchers are still uncovering: not all cod are the same.

In this episode of Time and Tide, we explore how scientists, fishers, and managers are rethinking what we know about Atlantic Cod in the Gulf of Maine. Managing fisheries has often been compared to managing a forest, except the trees are invisible and constantly on the move. When it comes to cod, that challenge is even more complex.

Researchers at the University of New Hampshire (UNH) are leading a Sea Grant–funded study examining two distinct stocks of Atlantic Cod in the western Gulf of Maine. Principal Investigator Adrienne Kovach and Co-Investigator Linas Kenter share how winter-spawning and spring-spawning cod differ biologically, and why those differences matter as ocean temperatures change.

In Act Two, we hear from longtime fisherman David Goethel, who brings decades of experience on the water to the conversation. He reflects on how groundfishing in the Gulf of Maine has changed over time and why collaboration between scientists and fishermen is critical to sustaining both the resource and the communities that depend on it.

Finally, Renee Zobel, Marine Program Supervisor with the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, connects the dots. What do these scientific discoveries mean for the future of fisheries management in New England, and how can management respond to a changing ocean?

Whether you cast a line offshore or order a fish sandwich at your favorite local spot, this episode dives into more than cod biology. It’s a story about the enduring ties between coastal communities and the sea.

Guest Speakers:

Linas Kenter, Ph.D., Aquaculture and Fisheries Research Scientist, New Hampshire Sea Grant and University of New Hampshire

Adrienne Kovach, Ph.D., Professor Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire

David Goethel, Commercial Fisherman, Research Biologist and Fisheries Manager

Renee Zobel, Marine Program Supervisor, New Hampshire Fish and Game

Hosted by: Brian Yurasits, Science Communication Specialist, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Co-Hosted by: Erik Chapman, Executive Director, New Hampshire Sea Grant

Produced by: Brian Yurasits

Further reading:

Understanding differential climatic and exploitative impacts on two Atlantic cod stocks in the western Gulf of Maine

Endangered Species: Chronicles of the Life of a New England Fisherman and the F/V Ellen Diane

Atlantic Cod – NOAA Species Directory

New Hampshire Sea Grant works to enhance our relationship with the coastal environment to sustain healthy and resilient ecosystems, economies, and communities through integrated research, extension, education, and communications efforts. Based at the University of New Hampshire, New Hampshire Sea Grant is one of 34 programs in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program, a state-federal partnership serving America’s coasts. Learn more by visiting: seagrant.unh.edu

University of New Hampshire is an equal opportunity employer, learn more: https://extension.unh.edu/civil-rights-statement